Breaking Earth
by masqueradingHEART
Summary: Dustin's got newfound abilities. And, to the dismay of the rest of the Rangers, they're not exactly good powers. Enter some new kids in town, add some new villains, and we've got a mess on our hands.
1. and so it begins

**disclaimer!** i really wished i owned power rangers ninja storm. i could have done so much with dustin. loving him. letting him love me. hurting him. seeing him writhe in pain because, for some reason (which i have found to be not so odd) turns me on. but really, on that note, if you think seeing your favorite, most attractive characters getting hurt is sexy, you're soo not alone. every sane girl in the world does.

right. so i don't own anything power rangers.

**author's note!** so here's my new obsession. prns. it's a little out of my element (try a lot). i usually ONLY do sirius black from harry potter stories. so i'm not so sure how well this is going to work out. but seriously, i haven't stopped watching this show for like two days straight now. or reading fanfiction for it. i used to love it way back in the day when it first came out, forgot about it, and now my love for dustin has resurfaced. seriously. he's hot.

anyway, there will be no slash in this story. if i can help it. it may sound like there's some shane/dustin in it and some hunter/dustin in it, but really, slash is just inescapable for me. i can't help it. it's ALWAYS there. anyway, i'll try my best to keep it out, or bring it in - whatever you want. there's gonna be some dustin/marah. and i haven't decided if i want to keep that "new kids in town" thing true or not. if i do, there will be some dustin/oc. but it all depends on what YOU, the reader, wants. so, to let me know what that is, you must REVIEW.

i also want to give a couple of shoutouts. the first to glenn mcmillan, for being so damn hot. had it not been for you, this story would have never come up. then i want to send you towards exclamation's page to read dark ninja. that was the fanfiction i stayed up until four in the morning reading last night, continued on when i woke up this afternoon, and finished it then. it is AWESOME. and i really don't want dustin to be gay 'cause i want him. lol. anyway, you can find that story under my favorites. and finally to brezo-1816 and her fic earth legacy for it was the first prns fanfic i've read and i got inspiration for this fic from it. if anything sounds too familiar between this and that one, let me know. but that should only happen in the beginning if it does at all (which i hope not 'cause that would be sucky) since she's only got three chapters up on that fic.

anyway, i'm done with this freakishly long author's note. expect another author's note at the end reminding you to review. (: ENJOY!

* * *

The Kelzacks were normally no problem whatsoever. Sure, they were a nuisance and a pain the butt, but they were usually taken down in a matter of minutes. They were no match for the Rangers. Even the Furies weren't so bad – and they were like high-tech Kelzacks. But it was what came after the nasty little buggers that managed to take even the slightest of tolls on the Rangers.

Spinning and kicking at a last Kelzack, Shane steadied himself and took a look around. Still in his civilian clothes, he dusted off the left knee of his jeans as he saw his team finishing off the rest of the Kelzacks. Not even a scratch on Hunter and Blake as the two brothers chuckled to themselves. Tori groaned as she kicked at a scrambling straggler. Dustin had his trademark goofy grin on his face, although it didn't reach his eyes. Shane sighed. Ever since that Beevil and Marah thing, the yellow ranger hadn't been the same. Shane knew it was more of the boy being ashamed of himself than being heartbroken. Although the others thought differently, making that clear through their teasing, Shane could tell that there was something deeper bugging Dustin than just having been hurt by one of their enemies.

"So where's the big ugly guy?" Said Ranger's voice called out, noticeably missing out on a great deal of the humor that his voice would usually hold. Or, at least it was noticeable to Shane.

Dustin held a point, though. Kelzacks weren't usually followed by nothing, not for this long anyway. The fight against Lothor came in routine: Kelzacks, ugly alien thing, then enlarged ugly alien thing after the Rangers defeated the normal sized version. Again and again, the same thing.

There wasn't time for anyone to answer, however, when a large explosion from behind blew the five off of their feet. Shane heard various disgruntled groans and shouts as he and his team flew through the air, landing harshly on their backs or stomachs. "What the hell was that?" Shane asked as they scrambled to their feet and looked around, seeing nothing. "Everyone alright?" He called out, almost as an afterthought. He never really imagined his team getting seriously hurt, even in their civilian clothes, during a fight.

He got various answers, all of them confirming that the two other Wind Rangers and the two Thunder Rangers were all alright. Looking around one more time and not seeing anything, Shane was getting more and more confused by the second. Huge explosions didn't just come out of nowhere. Nodding at his fellow Rangers, the five friends shouted in unison:

"Ninja Storm, Ranger form!"

"Thunder Storm, Ranger form!"

All suited up in their different colors, ranging from yellow to crimson, they separated into pairs – Blake with Tori, Hunter with Dustin, and Shane by himself. Soon enough, Cam would appear and the six would be full. But as of yet, there didn't seem to be a big enough problem. Just some silly Kelzaks and random explosions.

It was silent at the power plant. Obviously something was coming – and something bad. Shane was getting nervous. Clearly Lothor was up to something and he wasn't exactly looking forward to it. At least he didn't hear anything from the rest of the group, which meant that they weren't in any immediate danger.

"Anything Cam?" Shane spoke into his morpher.

Cam's response came back quickly – "No, it's like there's nothing there. I'm not getting any signal from anything."

"Then what was that huge explosion?" Shane asked back, confusion etching his voice.

He could practically hear Cam shrug as the confusion was echoed back in the other boy's voice. "I'm not sure. But I really don't think anything's there."

Shane nodded. "Alright, we'll take one more look around, see if we spot anything, then we'll head back."

The message was soon passed on to the rest of the team, all of them ready to give in and call it a day.

* * *

In their ninja clothes, the five rangers stood around Ninja Ops, arms crossed and staring at Cam as if he was the reason everything was so out of whack.

"So are you telling me that that explosion really just came out of nowhere? That's impossible, Cam," Hunter was saying.

The green Samurai ninja sighed and took his glasses off, as he often did to exaggerate a point (or more for dramatic affect if you asked the rangers). "No, that's not what I'm saying. What I'm saying is that there was no sign of anything at the power plant before or after the explosion, other than the Kelzacks."

"And I'm pretty sure that Kelzacks aren't the ones who caused it," Shane commented.

Cam shook his head. "They were gone long before the explosion," he sighed again.

"Maybe it was just a coincidence?" Tori put out. "A natural reaction from the plant?"

With that, the conversation ended and the group dispersed, Hunter and Blake going in a corner to talk. As Tori chatted it up with Cam, Shane and Dustin were left standing on opposite sides of the room. Sensei was off meditating, hoping to find more answers to the mysterious incident just minutes before.

Dustin sighed and ran a hand through his hair before announcing he was going to hit the track. "Call me if anything comes up, alright?" Shane nodded and stared after the yellow ranger with a hint of worry on his face as he left.

"Dustin will be alright, Shane," Sensei's voice broke into the red ranger's thoughts after a moment of staring at the blank space that Dustin had just evacuated.

Turning his head to face the guinea pig, Shane sighed. "I know, it's just not the same when he's not his full annoying self," he said, forcing a smile onto his face.

"He shall come around in time," Sensei said, with a slight inclination of his tiny head.

* * *

He'd just finished a few rounds on the track, his time getting quicker each time, and was walking his bike off the track. He had to admit, he'd been getting better at motocross ever since the incident with Marah. But Dustin was always fiercer when he was angry – he may not have a whole lot of control, but at least he could be stronger and faster. Taking his helmet off, he shook his hair out of his eyes and took a look around. There were only a few other riders, and they were all packing up as well. But it was getting late and, of course, it wasn't safe to ride past nightfall. Besides, it was dinnertime and dinner is a meal that most do not wish to miss.

Even still, it was eerily quiet and Dustin didn't like it. Although there was a bit of music playing and friends were high-fiving each other and laughing loudly, it was a distant kind of silence and it freaked the yellow ranger out. Sighing, he gathered his things together and headed out.

He was on his way home when his morpher buzzed in and Cam's voice rang out. "Dustin, head back to the skate park. We've got a Kelzack infestation."

"Roger that," Dustin replied, changing his direction towards the skate park.

He hadn't gotten as far as turning around when he was suddenly knocked off of his feet. "What the –" he trailed off. Scrambling to get onto his feet, he was pushed back down as a foot collided with his chest. Looking up at the thing that was pinning him to the ground, the yellow ranger, still clad in the civilian clothes he'd changed into after he finished on the track, was surprised to see that it was human-looking. Usually the goons Lothor sent down were obviously aliens. But this man was clearly as human as Dustin or Shane or Hunter or Blake. He had jet black hair that was cut short and cold, icy blue eyes that were so filled with malice that Dustin was sure he'd get lost in them and then would never be able to find his way out. His skin was pale, as white as a sheet almost and he was dressed in normal clothes.

Grabbing the other man's ankle and flipping him off of him, Dustin jumped to his feet quickly and immediately got into his fighting stance. "Who are you?" He demanded as his opponent slowly gathered himself to his feet.

A smirk was all Dustin got in reply as the other man struck at him again. The yellow ranger was barely able to block the punch and he could feel the bones in his arm shake as the force collided with his left wrist. "What the hell is wrong with you, dude?" Dustin asked, his brow furrowing as the man struck at him hit after hit, kick after kick, punch after punch. With every new move, it was getting harder and harder to block the next one. Clearly this man knew that Dustin was no match for him. He must have trained his entire life the way he could move from one stance to another within less than a second.

Sure enough, Dustin was soon on his back again as the stranger sneered down at him. Reaching his right arm down and grabbing the front of Dustin's shirt, he used his left fist to deliver a powerful punch to the side of the younger boy's head. He was out before his head could fully snap to the side from the extensity of the force.

* * *

"Is Dustin here?" Hunter's irritated voice asked as the four ninjas made their way back into Ninja Ops after their fight with the Kelzacks. Dustin had never showed and while Shane and Tori were worried, Hunter was frustrated. He and the yellow ranger had been getting into fights ever before the whole Beevil episode and Dustin's lack of responsibility in trusting Marah, the enemy, had really put Hunter over the edge. Blake, on the other hand, tried to remain the peacemaker, while doing so as subtly as possible to keep from looking like he was taking sides.

Cam looked up from the laptop he was working on with a look of confusion etched on his brow. "No," he said slowly, drawing the word out. "I sent him to join you guys. I take it he didn't show?"

Hunter snorted.

"Do you think we should be worried about him?" Tori asked, looking at Sensei now.

Sensei turned to his son. "Cam, see if you can locate his morpher," he instructed calmly. "Tori, I'm sure he's just fine and there's nothing to worry about."

Cam was already set to work locating Dustin's morpher. He was typing furiously on the keyboard, pressing the big red button in the center as he finished. "Got him," he stated simply and with only word on where the yellow ranger was, the team was off.

* * *

"Dustin!" Tori cried out as she saw her friend laying on his back, unmoving, on the ground. Fear struck her heart as she realized that he could be… She couldn't even think it. Rushing over to his body, Tori and Shane knelt down beside their fellow wind ranger while Hunter and Blake stood to the side. While they were close friends with Dustin, they hadn't been for anywhere near as long as Tori and Shane – not to mention the fact that Hunter felt entirely guilty for thinking his friend had ditched them to fight the Kelzacks (not that that would have been a problem, the bastards were down in minutes, as usual – it was just the fact that Dustin would do something so backstabbing to them).

Shane was checking for a pulse and he breathed a sigh of relief when he found one. If something had happened to his team member, he would have never forgiven himself. He was supposed to keep an eye out on Dustin, especially as of late. He was so vulnerable when he was in a mood like this. Shane couldn't believe that he had allowed his friend to get hurt. "Let's get him back to Ninja Ops," he said quietly, but loud enough for the rest to hear. Blake stepped forward and helped Shane lift the yellow ranger up. His limp form was surprisingly light, lighter than Shane remember it ever being and he wondered if Dustin hadn't eaten a whole lot lately.

They streaked back to Ninja Ops, there within a matter of seconds. Cam jumped to his feet the moment they stumbled inside.

"What happened?" He asked worriedly. The others shook their heads as Blake and Shane, with help from Cam and Hunter, lowered Dustin's unmoving body onto the low table in the middle of the room.

"We don't know," Blake answered. "We got there and he was just out."

Cam inspected Dustin's head, the huge bruise on the right side being the main point of focus. "Well I can bet that we can't rule out an attack as our best guess," he said cynically, a poor attempt at a joke. He looked up at the gang. "Tori, get me some water, would you?" The girl nodded and headed off to get a glass of water. "Blake, grab the medical kit," Cam continued to the other blue ninja, this time the navy. He also took off, following in the direction Tori ran off towards. "Shane, help me get his shirt off – see how much more damage there's been done."

The red ninja hesitated a moment, more out of lack of attention than anything else. He could barely process what was going on. He was so consumed with worry for Dustin, more so than he had ever been before, that he couldn't help but zone out. All his focus was on the yellow ranger.

"Shane," Cam called again, looking up from Dustin to the red ranger, who cleared his throat and hurried to help, the command finally sinking into his mind. As he and Cam gently pulled Dustin's shirt off, the boy squirmed in his sleep but didn't wake.

Luckily, there weren't very many bruises on Dustin's torso. Granted, there were obviously several of them, all recent, but nothing too bad. Clearly, either he'd managed to fight off whoever his opponent was easily enough, allowing just that one shot to his head due him in, or it had been a short fight, one Dustin hadn't been able to put up much of a fight in. Whatever the case was, they wouldn't know what had happened or who had attacked him until he woke up.

And the other rangers, as Tori and Blake returned with the water and first aid kid, could only hope that that would be soon.

**author's note!** take two. see, i told you there'd be one. so review. duh. and i promise to update merry-go-round soon. i've already got probably about half of the chapter finished, depending on how long i end up making it. then i've also got a BUNCH more fics waiting to be written. a couple of them i've already started, but i don't want to post them until i get MGR or still here a little more off the ground. which i'll probably post them as soon as i finish the first chapter anyway. don't let me.

anyway, i'll probably have an update for this one tomorrow, depending on my mood. seing as it's almost four thirty am, i don't know if i'll be waking up tomorrow while the sun's still up.

so review and motivate me. let me know what you think!

peace.


	2. and so it hurts

Dustin let out a groan as he opened his eyes, lifting a hand up to groggily rub his eyes

**disclaimer!** oh what a surprise. one day has passed and i still do not own power rangers. ah well, better luck tomorrow?

**author's note!** so i told you i would be back with another chapter today. although i didn't go to bed until 6 am last night, i still managed to wake up before nightfall. anyway, so i've decided to keep the oc character in here, although it's still up to you if you want her to have any sort of relationship with dustin. as of right now, you don't see much of her, so you'll have time to make a decision, my lovely readers. she'll be developed in due time. anyway, i hope you enjoy!

* * *

Dustin let out a groan as he opened his eyes, lifting a hand up to groggily rub his eyes. He felt as if he had just gotten hit by a truck. Propping himself up into a sitting position, he blinked his eyes several times to get them used to the light, however dim it was. Looking around as they finally adjusted at least somewhat, he found he was laying on his back in the middle of Ninja Ops. How he got there, he couldn't remember. The last thing he remembered was heading back from the track and Cam buzzing him in to go fight some Kelzacks… And then that weird man coming out of nowhere and attacking him.

Swinging his legs over the side of the table he was lying on, he rubbed the side of his head where the stranger's punch had hit him. It hurt like hell.

"You're awake," Cam's astounded voice broke through the silence and Dustin jumped slightly. Turning his head toward the direction of his friend, he steadied himself, embarrassed to have been startled so easily. "How are you feeling?" Cam asked, ignoring the flinch and heading over to stand by his friend, feeling his forehead.

Dustin shrugged and grumbled out a "like I just got hit in the head with fifty pounds of bricks" under his breath.

The green ranger handed him the glass of water that he'd been carrying with him, which Dustin just noticed. "So what exactly happened out there?" He asked, but the yellow ranger just shrugged.

"I don't know," Dustin answered after forcing down a swallow of water. "I was just heading on my way to the skate park when some guy just came up behind me."

"One of Lothor's guys?"

Dustin shook his head. "I don't know," he repeated. "He didn't look like one, but who else could it have been? I mean, he looked completely normal, no alien-like looks. But I don't think it was just some random passerby, do you?" He looked up at his friend, who was still standing in front of him, looking both grim and serious.

Cam sighed and rubbed his temple before taking his glasses off. "It could have been. Are you missing anything? Maybe you got mugged or something."

Dustin snorted. "In Blue Bay?" He sighed and shook his head. "After all we've been through, just being mugged seems kind of ridiculous now." He let a small smile slide onto his face and he jumped to his feet. He wobbled a little, which didn't go unnoticed by his comrade who stuck out a hand to help steady him, but Dustin just shook his head to indicate he was fine. "I should head home," he announced. "I've got to get to work soon and I seriously stink."

Cam was hesitant to allow him to go, worried that something could happen to him again, but he nodded as Dustin walked out of Ninja Ops, without awaiting a response. Besides, he could still keep watch over him and if something went wrong, he'd be able to tell. Sighing, he went over to the computer, knowing he had to let the others know that Dustin was up and, seemingly, okay.

* * *

"And you just let him go?" Shane's angry voice shouted at Cam. "He's hurt, just got attacked the last time he was alone, and you just let him _leave_? Are you insane?"

"I'm keeping an eye on him, Shane," Cam reasoned. "Don't think I'm going to make the same mistake twice. Look, he's fine. He's at work right now. There's plenty of people around him, I don't think anyone's going to try anything."

Shane sighed angrily. He was still frustrated, but Cam had a point there.

"Besides, for all we know it might not have been one of Lothor's goons that attacked him," Cam continued, voicing what he and Dustin had gone over just recently. He'd already replayed what Dustin had told him to the rest of the rangers. "And in that case, I'm thinking it won't happen again." Of course, they had never discovered if Dustin was missing anything, if he'd been robbed, since the yellow ranger had played it off as a joke, expectantly.

Shane shook his head. "I'm coming in," he announced and ended their conversation.

Cam sighed this time and turned around in his chair to find his father, in guinea pig form, staring at him. "What do you think of this, dad?" He asked.

Sensei shook his small head. "I'm not sure, Cam. But we must keep our eyes and ears open," was his answer. Never very helpful, that one, Cam thought to himself. But he nodded nonetheless and stood up.

Soon enough, Shane appeared, Tori at his side. Apparently he ran into her on his way to Ninja Ops and she agreed to come with him.

"So what exactly are we going to do?" Shane said, his way of greeting. His arms were crossed and worry was sketched all over his face, although he was trying to conceal it. Tori crossed the room to take a seat on the table, next to where Sensei was standing.

"There's nothing for us to do," Cam stated. "We don't know what happened. I've been trying to lock into any security cameras to see if any caught anything, but none of them did." He ran a hand over his face. "We'll just have to wait it out."

But that didn't seem to go over well with the team.

* * *

"See you later, Kelly," Dustin Brooks said as he waved goodbye to his boss and exited Storm Chargers. The bell on the door rang and Dustin stuffed his hands into the pockets of his jeans as the door closed shut behind him. He was a little wary as he headed over to Ninja Ops for training, but he didn't want to think too much of it. Chances were it wouldn't happen again. And now he'd be more prepared.

His head had been killing him ever since he woke up. His working performance was less than excellent and he'd found himself sitting with his head in between his hands more often than not. Kelly let him off work early, saying he was doing more harm than good and that she could just finish his shift by herself. She'd asked a lot of questions about his face, the huge bruise on the side of his head, but he managed to brush them off by saying he didn't feel like talking about it. Kelly was smart enough to know that if Dustin didn't want to talk, something must be bothering him. So he set off, supposedly going home to get some rest when really he was going to be doing the exact opposite.

He was just leaving the parking lot when a hand grabbed his shoulder. Spinning around, he caught the person's wrist in his hand and flipped them over on their back before realizing it was just Hunter.

"Oh god," he said, racing to the aid of his friend. "I'm so sorry, dude." He reached his hand out, pulling the blonde boy to his feet.

The latter brushed off his pants before raising a hand in the air. "No problem, I shouldn't have snuck up on you like that," Hunter responded, brushing the apology off. "You on your way to Ninja Ops?" He asked, falling into step with the other boy.

Dustin nodded.

"I'll walk with you."

They continued on their way for a few minutes before Hunter spoke up again. "Hey Dustin," he started. The dark haired boy looked over at him. "I'm sorry I've been getting on your case about the whole Marah thing," he said after taking a breath.

Dustin just shook his head. "Don't worry about it. You were right; I'm an idiot," he said, ending a little solemnly when he meant it to come off with a teasing tone.

Hunter saw through it. Stopping in his tracks, he grabbed Dustin's arm to get him to do the same. The yellow ranger turned around to face him and Hunter said, "You're not an idiot. Believe me, Dustin. Had you not saw the good in Blake and me, we wouldn't have been here now."

Dustin shook his head. "Yeah, well one good doesn't make it all right," he said with a grim smile on his face. With that, he turned on his heel again and walked away. Hunter, knowing he was fighting a losing battle, sighed, ran a hand through his hair, and followed after him.

"And sometimes one bad doesn't make it all wrong," he said quietly as he passed Dustin, causing the other boy to stop again and stare after the blonde in confusion. "You coming?" Hunter turned his head back briefly to grin at Dustin, who rolled his eyes and jogged to catch up with him.

As they trekked into Ninja Ops they found that the other ninjas were all already there. Tori raced to Dustin, embracing him in a tight hug before he could even see her coming.

"Tor, you might want to try letting him breathe," Shane suggested, earning a glare as the blue ranger pulled away from her friend.

"Are you alright?" She asked, turning back to Dustin. "How are you feeling?"

Dustin grinned and rolled his eyes. "I'm fine, Tor," he responded. When in all actuality, he had had to bite back a wince when she'd hugged him. He was still bruised from the day before and he could still feel them. Any extra, unneeded pressure wasn't exactly a walk in the park.

"Then let's get this training beginning," Blake said, trying to break the silence that followed after Dustin's never comment; no one believed that he was actually fine, each for their own reasons.

* * *

After the training was completed, Dustin felt exhausted. He'd fought his way through the exercises, to shake off all of the concerned looks he was getting every time he was knocked to his feet, but he wasn't up for it, not today. He still had a killer headache and every blow he took to his stomach or chest made him want to gasp for pain and collapse onto the ground. But he had to fight through it; otherwise, he'd be stuck sitting out and everyone would be pitying him. And he didn't need any more pity. They were all giving him enough of that lately.

He hated pity.

As the rangers returned in to Ninja Ops, everyone collapsed and Dustin was able to relax finally. He put his head into his hands as he knelt down in front of the table, resting his elbows on the surface.

"You alright, Dustin?" Shane's voice pierced through Dustin's ears sharply, although he had asked it quietly. The yellow ranger looked up, irritated. All he wanted to do was rest a little bit, and here Shane was ruining that.

"Yeah, yeah," Dustin said tiredly, waving his friend off and not letting his irritation seep into his voice. "Just a little beat, you know."

Shane nodded in understanding but the concern on his face and in his eyes didn't change. "Maybe you should head home, get some sleep," he suggested.

Dustin ran a hand through his hair and nodded. "Yeah, good idea," he said and stood up, almost wobbling, but catching himself. No need to rise any more concern. He headed to leave Ninja Ops, muttering a "goodbye" to the rest of the rangers.

Hunter jumped to his feet, taking a few strides until he caught up with the yellow ranger. "Hey, I'll walk you," he said, but Dustin shook his head.

"Nah, don't worry about it. I'll be fine," he said with a small smile, which he had had to force. What was it with his friends wanting to be by him every second of the day? It wasn't as if he was going to get attacked every time he was alone.

So, heading out of Ninja Ops, he continued on his way home alone, leaving the rest of the ninjas staring after him.

"Something's up with him," Blake pointed out.

"No duh," Cam responded with a roll of his eyes.

"He's probably just worn out," Tori shrugged. "He's been through a lot, you know?"

The others nodded and dispersed, heading to their own homes to get some rest of their own.

* * *

Dustin was about halfway home when he realized something wasn't right. He had that same quiet feeling surrounding him, despite the hustle and bustle around him. It felt as if someone was watching him. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up and he turned around, his eyes straining to spot out anything out of the ordinary. All that stood out was a dude with green hair.

Turning back around, he continued on his way home. He couldn't shake the feeling that something horrible was going to happen, but he kept his ears keen and he was at the ready. He was so in tune with waiting for something bad to happen that he didn't realize that someone was heading straight for him.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry!" A girl's voice called out as Dustin felt a slam into his chest. "I'm such an idiot, I wasn't looking where I was going. I'm so sorry!" She repeated.

Dustin shook his head but couldn't help but grin at the small girl in front of him. She was probably around seventeen, with short black hair and brown eyes. She was wearing jeans and an orange T-shirt, with a black bag strapped around her shoulders.

"It's alright," Dustin said, taking her by the shoulders to steady her as she stumbled when she scooted backwards. "Don't worry about it."

She shook her head this time. "God, I am such a klutz. You're seriously the fourth person I've run into today," she said, shame slipping into her voice as she rolled her eyes at herself. "I'm Kelsey, by the way," she said, sticking her right hand out as she smiled sheepishly at Dustin.

"Dustin," the boy responded, gripping her hand in his. "It's nice to meet you, Kelsey," he added with a slight inclination of his head.

She grinned and said, "Even under the circumstances?" with a small laugh.

Dustin nodded. "Even under the circumstances," he repeated as an answer.

She brushed a strand of loose hair behind her ear and caught the time on her watch as she did so. "Oh shoot. I'm running a little bit late," she announced. "But it was good running into you and I hope to see you around?"

The taller boy nodded in response and voiced his opinion back, "Yeah, that'd be cool." He smiled as she waved goodbye and started running off in the opposite direction. Turning back to the direction of his house, Dustin never noticed the dark-haired man staring after him.

* * *

**author's note!** soo what did you think? did you like it? hate it? i know there wasn't much to it, but not all chapters can have action in it. at least you were introduced to kelsey a little bit. what do you think of her so far? there's not much to her just yet, but that'll change. so do me a solid and review? xD

peace.


	3. and so it restarts

**disclaimer!** sooo i still own nothing. it's a shame, right? i could have done wonderous things with glenn mcmillan's body.

**author's note!** woo! i updated! be proud, be very proud. i was falling asleep near the end of it, or else it would have been longer, but hopefully it'll start getting better after this chapter. enjoy!

* * *

Stepping out of the shower as the water started getting cold, Dustin dried himself off before wrapping his towel around his waist. Using one hand to hold it in place as he exited his bathroom and headed into his room, he used the other to rub his irritated eyes. Despite the fact that he got plenty of sleep the night before, he felt as if he hadn't slept in days. But he figured that was what came with being knocked unconscious rather than actually getting sleep on his own accord.

Either way, a huge yawn escaped his lips and he felt a large headache forming. After quickly getting dressed into his pajama pants, he headed back into his bathroom to hang up the towel. Passing the mirror on his way to doing so, he really caught sight of himself for the first time that day. He'd been so busy running around that he hadn't gotten the chance to actually sit down. But now that he could see himself in the mirror, how horrible the side of his head really looked and how awful the bruises on his bare chest must have seemed, he suddenly understood why everyone was looking at him with such concern today. Granted, he's seen worse, but the mystery behind the guy who did this to him just added to how bad the situation was.

Groaning, he ran his towel through his wet hair before hanging it back up.

He felt ashamed of himself, for allowing this to happen to him. He was a Power Ranger – he was supposed to expect the unexpected, be on his A-game 24/7, be able to fight down any enemy that crossed his path. And yet he was left unsuspecting, taken down in a matter of seconds, and left unconscious on the side of the road. Had it been Shane or Hunter or Blake or Cam or even Tori, it wouldn't have happened. They would have been able to fight the bastard off. But no, it just so happened to have been Dustin – the _weak_ ranger.

He wasn't good for anything. Hell, he could barely tie his shoes right from time to time. And he's one of the defenders of the universe? It's a good thing there are five other Power Rangers to cover up for his mistakes. And that was all he did – make mistakes and let the others fix them. He might as well give up being a Power Ranger all together if all he was going to do was get beat up on and be a burden to the rest of the team.

Collapsing into his bed, he barely was able to swing his feet up over the edge before he passed out.

* * *

When he awoke again, it was still dark outside. His room was pitch black and he could barely see his hand if he would hold it up in front of his face. Groaning he rolled over on his side and tried to fall back to sleep in vain. He wasn't sure what woke him up – some driving force that had made him sit upright all of a sudden. He didn't remember even dreaming, so he knew it couldn't have been any sort of nightmare that forced him awake. He was sweating, though, he realized suddenly. His bare chest was sticky and wet and his hair was damp. Even though he wasn't hot, he pushed his covers off of him as if that was the reason. As far as he was concerned it was the only logical explanation for the sweat.

Running a hand through his face, which was also covered in sweat, he groaned again before switching to lie on his back again. Turning his head to look over at his alarm clock, the red numbers staring back at him the only source of light in the dark room, he was angered to see that it read three thirty. He suddenly wasn't very tired anymore.

Naturally. He wouldn't be tired at three thirty in the morning when he'd spent the entirety of the day in exhaustion. It would be at this time in the night that he was suddenly filled with energy. He was bound to be tired again the next day and his friends would naturally assume it would be because of the beating he had taken the day before. And if he tried to tell them it was just because he hadn't gotten much sleep the night before, they would again believe it was all because of the same incident.

Groaning for a third time, he flipped over so that his face was buried into the pillow. There was no way he was going to fall back asleep.

* * *

The sharp ringing of his alarm clock woke him up at approximately seven o'clock. His arm shot out from under his pillow rapidly, as if on reflex, and smacked the off button violently, knocking the device off of his nightstand in the process. He'd fallen asleep about seventeen minutes ago and was angered that his alarm clock would dare wake him up already. He wished suddenly that he wasn't a Power Ranger, that he didn't have to wake up early to get to training. It was the summertime. He could never stand getting up early during the school year, the summer was forbidden.

Nevertheless, he dragged himself out of bed groggily and headed into the bathroom, rubbing his eyes. He was not looking forward to training – at all. He was tired and exhausted and wanted nothing more than to collapse into bed and never get up again. But he knew he had a commitment. He, no matter how little he deserved it, was a Power Ranger and it was up to him and the other five Rangers to train as much as possible so that they were prepared to save the world.

He dressed and got ready quickly and headed downstairs to the kitchen, where his mom was sitting at the table, drinking a cup of coffee. She looked up at him with raised eyebrows. "Dustin," she started as he came further into the room, his face coming into full light now. She set the cup down and started to stand, but Dustin held up his hand and shook his head to stop her.

"I'm fine, mom, really," he said, seeping in enough honesty into his tone as he could. "Just got a little too competitive with Shane is all," he added with a shrug of his shoulder. His mom knew that he and his friends fought pretty often, physically, but as far as she was concerned, it was all for play and fun. Grabbing a granola bar from the pantry, he waved to his mom and announced he had to get going.

He hated keeping secrets from his mom. Ever since she and his dad split up and the latter moved out of town, she was always so lonely. She had her girls from the book club to talk to and she played a little bit of tennis every now down at the country club, but other than that and work, she didn't really have many friends to hang out with or many activities to keep herself busy with. She used to have to look after Dustin most of the time, but now he didn't need as much looking after anymore.

He had made his way out of his house and was almost out of sight enough to ninja streak when he saw a familiar face. A swish of black hair told him who it was and a grin slid onto his face. "Hey, Kelsey!" he called out to the girl he had just met the day before. She stopped in her tracks and looked around confused for a moment before her eyes caught sight of Dustin, and then an identical grin slipped onto her face.

"Hey there!" She called back to him as she made her way over to him. "What's up?" She asked cheerfully, although how someone could be so cheerful this early in the morning Dustin had no idea.

"Not much," he responded, running a hand through his hair, his trademark goofy grin on his face, though still lacking much of the goof it usually would have. "What are you doing out and about so early?"

Kelsey shrugged. "Just taking a walk. What about you, though? You don't exactly look like a morning person," she commented as Dustin let out a huge yawn.

The yellow ranger let out a light laugh before running a hand through his hair again with a guilty look on his face. "Nope – mornings so are not for me. I've just got to meet up with a few friends is all," he responded, at least vaguely honest. His morpher beeped at that moment, however, telling him that he was late, and his innocent expression quickly changed to a guilty one. "Oh crap, I've got to get going. Running late, you know. I'll see you around?" He said quickly and Kelsey grinned and nodded.

"See you around," she repeated and waved as they departed.

* * *

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Dustin blurted out as he came running into Ninja Ops. I'm late and I'm sorry." The rest of the Rangers were already out training and Dustin was left alone with Sensei and Cyber Cam. Sensei, in his rodent form and all, flipped over towards him.

"Take a seat, Dustin," Sensei said solemnly and Dustin did as he was told. "I worry for your health," he continued.

Dustin shook his head. "No, Sensei, I was only late today because I ran into a… friend and – "

Sensei held up a tiny pawed hand to stop him. "I'm not talking about just this morning, Dustin. Ever since the incident, you've been tiring very easily. Maybe you should take a few days off, catch up on some rest," Sensei suggested.

The yellow ranger didn't know how to respond. "I-I don't need a few days off, Sensei. Really, I'm fine. There's no need to worry about me. I promise," he managed with. It wasn't as if he was experiencing anything much different. Other than the fact they had no idea who was the one who had attacked him, there wasn't much difference to what he and the Rangers faced every day. They were all just blowing it out of proportion.

"I insist, Dustin, that you take a short vacation. Just a couple of days, that is all I am asking of you." Sensei sounded so sincere, so worried, that Dustin hadn't been able to say no. He sighed and nodded his head. "Hunter will take you back to your house," the guinea pig continued, but this time it was Dustin's turn to cut him off.

"Really, Sensei, I don't need an escort. I can walk myself home," he stated, standing up from his position. But Hunter was already behind him and Sensei gave him a look that only he, in the form of a guinea pig, could get away with. Dustin sighed again and headed over towards Hunter. "Alright, man, let's go," he said regretfully.

"Take care of yourself, Dustin," Sensei said as his parting words.

Hunter led the way out of Ninja Ops, Dustin trailing angrily at his heels. They were well out of the forest, after ninja streaking their way out, before they said a word to each other.

Hunter was the one who struck up the conversation. "Sensei only means the best for you," he said, referring to Dustin's attitude. "He wants you to be safe, to be at the top of your game."

The dark haired boy looked up at his blonde counterpart. He sighed after a moment before looking back ahead of him. "I know, it just pisses me off a little. I'm fine, perfectly fine. It's not like none of us have ever been kicked around before."

Hunter nodded. "It's just a little different with you right now. I mean, we have no idea who's behind all of this – if it's Lothor or some new guy – and we don't know if it's going to happen again. Speaking of which," he added as an afterthought. "I'm supposed to tell you that Sensei doesn't want you wandering around alone. Not for a while, until everything dies down a bit."

Dustin groaned. "What, am I going to be under house arrest or something?" He mumbled out.

With a sympathetic look on his face, Hunter looked over at his friend, ensuing another moan to escape from Dustin's lips. "Sorry, man. Just spend some time with your mom or something. I'm sure she'd like that," the crimson ranger suggested. He was right; Dustin's mom had just been complaining that she hardly ever saw her only son and child anymore and had rambled on and on about how much she missed him. He just hated to be cooped up.

The yellow ranger shook his head. "Unbelievable," he muttered under his breath.

By that point, they'd reached Dustin's house and Hunter left him at the front door, walking him up to the stoop as if they had just gotten back from a date. Dustin fished around in his pockets for his keys. His mom should be at work by now and she, naturally, always locked the door before leaving home.

"I'm sorry, Dustin. Really, I am," Hunter said, sympathizing with his friend greatly. He too was not one who preferred to be locked up.

Dustin waved him off. "Don't worry about it. I'll be fine, I can find something to keep myself occupied with. See you," he said, twisting his key into the lock only to find out it was already unlocked as Hunter walked off. Pushing the door quietly open, he wandered around the first story, looking for any signs of his mother and then he headed upstairs.

Someone was sitting on his bed.

**author's note!** sooo review, that's obvious. what about kelsey? she'll be coming in in small portions for a little while. maybe after this chapter she'll be a bigger, more important character, but for now not so much. anyway, have fun waiting for the next chapter after my little bit of a cliffhanger. love you all.

peace.


	4. and so it changes

**disclaimer!** still don't own ninja storm. what a shame that is, indeed, don't you think? i could have put some slash in it. i could have put more angst in it. more violence. more dustin getting hurt. ohh what i could have done with my poor, lovely dustin.

**author's note!** well i'm back. this chapter's a little longer than the rest (yay!) and i was going to make it even longer, but decided i would let you sit in torture for a little while longer. anyway i hope you enjoy, as always. i'm pretty happy with this chapter, but it's up to you guys to let me know whether or not i should be. soo review!

* * *

Hunter walked back into Ninja Ops with a feeling of dread filling him. Something just didn't feel right. Something told him that he shouldn't have left Dustin alone. It just didn't seem right. He should have gone in with the yellow ranger, spent a little time with him. Walking to his house, there was some sort of anxiousness that filled Hunter. And when they walked up the stairs and he left his friend at the door, it just tripled in size. He'd watched Dustin go in the door, waited a little while, nothing seemed to happen – no screaming, no sounds of anything breaking, all was calm. And so he'd left, headed back to Ninja Ops. It seemed safe to do so, but the entire way back he couldn't shake the feeling that something was terribly wrong.

He had a frown on his face and was ruffling the back of his hair in despair as he walked down to meet the rest of his ranger friends in Ninja Ops.

"You alright, Hunter?" Blake asked as soon as he caught sight of his brother. Something always seemed to be troubling Hunter, especially as of late. But then again, if there was nothing on Hunter's mind, then there was probably something wrong with him. The guy was totally secretive. He was always keeping things from other people, including Blake from time to time.

The crimson ranger looked up at his brother, biting his right thumbnail. "Hm?" he asked, acting as if he hadn't heard him, then shook his head as the question clicked. "Oh, yeah, I'm good. Don't worry about me."

A look on the navy ranger's face, as well as the blue, red, and green who had turned to listen in, told Hunter that no one bought his story. Sighing, he ran a hand through his blonde hair again and sat down. "I'm just worried about Dustin is all," he admitted finally. "I got this weird feeling that something wasn't right when I left him at his house." He shook his head again. "I don't know, it's probably nothing."

The other rangers all had mixed looks of confusion and worry etched on their faces.

"It wouldn't hurt to check up on it, though," Sensei chimed in. "Cam," he added, turning to his son, who nodded in return and set to work.

* * *

"Hello Dustin."

"Who the hell are you?" His voice cracked. His accursed voice cracked. His hand clenched the doorknob behind him as he hovered in the doorway.

The man sitting on his bed laughed at his reaction, his demeanor, and waved him over. "Come on, Dust, take a seat," he said, gesturing to the spot on the bed next to him. Dustin didn't move. How this man, _the_ man, made it into his home he'd never know. The doors had been locked. None of the windows even dared to budge. Nothing had seemed broken or out of place when he'd entered the house. It was as if the man had teleported himself into Dustin's room. Last year's yearbook was sitting open on the bed, the opposite side the man had gestured to, next to him.

"How did you get in here?" Dustin questioned his thoughts out loud, ready to pounce out the door on a second's notice. His eyes were narrowed as he tried to keep his voice steady this time.

The man shrugged and stood up, approaching the yellow ranger. Dustin's grip on the doorknob tightened. He remembered the last time he'd encountered this man very clearly and he didn't want a rerun of that. "Don't worry, Dustin," the man said, holding up his hands as if he was approaching a jumper. "I'm not going to hurt you. I'm here to help you."

Dustin snorted before he could help himself.

The man smiled slightly. "I know that might sound a little odd, considering our previous encounter, but it's the truth."

The yellow ranger rolled his eyes and his grip tightened on the door knob again, this time out of anger instead of fear. A low growl sounded from deep in his throat as the stranger lifted a hand and brushed Dustin's cheek gently, right where the bruise was still purple and black. The man laughed lightly and withdrew his hand, moving it from Dustin's cheek to his hand on the doorknob. He grasped the ranger's wrist and pulled it roughly from its position, shutting the door afterwards.

Dustin drew in a breath unconsciously and mentally kicked himself for showing his fear so obviously. The smirk on the stranger's face made him want to hurl. "What do you want?" He growled out, his eyes narrowing.

"You," the man replied simply, suddenly gripping the sides of Dustin's head with his palms. Dustin gasped in shock and then in pain as a feeling of fire burned through his head. The next thing he knew was total darkness.

* * *

"Anything?" Hunter asked as he nervously paced behind Cam. It was probably the sixtieth time the crimson ranger had repeated the question. It was really starting to get on Cam's nerves.

The rest of the rangers had been sent home. Hunter had opted to stay behind at Ninja Ops, in worry for Dustin.

Cam sighed. "No, Hunter. Nothing seems to be out of place. You're probably just overreacting." The samurai ranger turned around in the chair. "You should go home and get some rest." Hunter shook his head angrily.

"I know something's wrong, Cam," he repeated, but he turned on his heel and headed towards the exit anyway. "I can feel it," he muttered under his breath as he walked away.

The green samurai ranger shook his head as he watched the crimson ranger walk away. He would never understand the emotional imbalance of Hunter Bradley. One minute he was hating on Dustin, the next he was worried sick about the kid. Sighing again, he turned back to his computer and continued looking for any signs that something was up with the yellow ranger. As he'd been for the past half an hour, he was getting nothing. Whatever Hunter was worrying about had to be nothing.

* * *

Hunter didn't go home. He couldn't shake the feeling that something was up. It was bothering him immensely. He wanted to swing by Dustin's house, just to see if he was okay, but he forced himself not to. It was probably nothing, he tried to reassure himself. If Cam said everything was okay, everything had to be okay. Instead, he stopped by the track. Blake was there and some company would probably do Hunter well to get his mind off a certain yellow ranger.

Hunter and Dustin usually got along pretty well, but lately he'd been finding the other boy to be slightly infuriating. There was just something about him that was driving the crimson ranger insane. Whether it was his dorky, goofy, air-headed personality or his hair and eyes, Hunter couldn't tell, but he really was hoping for the former. Dustin just seemed to get on every one of the blonde boy's nerves. He was too trusting; got the rangers into spots of trouble too often. He was too air-headed; couldn't pay attention long enough to get anything done. He was too attractive.

No, scratch that last one. Hunter Bradley was anything but gay.

He spent about two hours on the track, before it started to get dark, then he headed off towards his house, Blake right at his side. He was lost in his thoughts as the two boys packed their stuff together and left the track.

"I'm going to stop by Storm Chargers real fast," Blake said suddenly, breaking Hunter out of his reverie. "I left a few things there earlier today." Hunter nodded absent-mindedly and the two parted to go their separate ways.

Without thinking about it, Hunter had somehow managed to make his way to Dustin's house instead of his own apartment he shared with his brother. He hadn't realized that he'd even been headed in that direction until he was standing outside the front door, ringing the doorbell.

He waited a few moments. No one answered. He tried it again, but still was responded by the sounds of nothing. To keep himself from panicking, he reassured himself that Dustin was in the shower, or sleeping, or had his music up too loud to hear the doorbell. He knocked on the door loudly, in hopes that maybe he would hear it that time. No such luck.

Hunter stayed there for a few more minutes, knocking the door and ringing the doorbell occasionally, before walking around the back. Nothing seemed to be out of place. He could see the light on in Dustin's room, but the blinds were shut, so it was impossible to see inside the house. He tapped on the window loudly, but got no response. Sighing in frustration, he headed back around to the front, knocking the door loudly again in vain.

He was about to leave when the sound of gravel crunching and the flash of headlights (for it had gotten late while Hunter was at the track and then waiting for Dustin to answer the door) stopped him in the tracks. A car was pulling into the driveway and Hunter forced a smile as he waved to Mrs. Brooks.

"Hey honey," the woman greeted as she turned the car off and got out.

"Hey, Mrs. Brooks. How are you?" Hunter responded out of politeness, instead of what would usually be curiosity. He had only met Dustin's mom a few times, but he really liked her. She was sincere and one of the coolest moms he'd ever met.

"Dustin not answering?" She asked, her brow furrowing in confusion as she glanced at her watch. "I didn't think he was working today."

Hunter shrugged his shoulders. "He's probably just sleeping or something. I haven't been here that long," he fibbed, but he didn't want to sound like some sort of obsessed freak, or a worry wart.

Mrs. Brooks clicked her tongue in aggravation as she searched through her purse frantically for her house key, which had somehow fallen to the bottomless pit of the bag. She really needed to start connecting it to her car keys. It would be so much easier. "Aha," she finally cried out in victory as she held them up, walking towards the front door to unlock the door. "Well, come on in, hon," she said as she held the now-unlocked door open for the two of them.

Hunter thought about protesting but figured the safety of his friend was of greater interest. So he followed Dustin's mom inside, where she called out her son's name loudly and shut the door behind him. "So are you guys going out or something?" She asked over her shoulder as she set her purse down on the kitchen counter and walked the short distance to Dustin's room, to knock on the door. "Dustin!" She called out loudly again.

The crimson ranger shook his head. "No, I was just checking up on him. He didn't feel so good earlier today," he responded. It wasn't exactly the truth, but it was close enough to it. Besides, it wasn't like he could tell her the full truth – oh, he got attacked by some strange man, got the shit beaten out of him, then was put on a leave of absence by our sensei, who's been training him the art of the ninja for a while now, oh and by the way, he's a power ranger. That didn't seem like it would go over too well with her.

"Hm," Mrs. Brooks muttered out in confusion as she pounded on the door again. "I don't hear the shower running, but that kid is the heaviest sleeper I know." She twisted the doorknob, finding it unlocked, and swung the door open.

The room was empty.

* * *

Dustin woke up for the third time in the past two days with a pounding headache. This was really getting old really fast. Sitting up, he looked around him, his eyes blinking open. He wasn't quite sure where he was, but he knew, wherever it was, it wasn't someplace he'd like to be. He was sitting in the grass, in what looked to be a forest. It was getting pretty dark outside and it was eerily quiet. He was really beginning to hate the silence. He was never one for silence in the first place and after all that's happened recently, he knew his dislike for it had to be justified. Every time it got quiet, something bad happened.

Pushing himself to his feet, he began walking in a direction, hoping it would take him out of the woods and back into civilization. He really had no idea where he was going, but hoped that his natural ability to connect with the earth was taking him in the right direction.

Looking down as he realized how bare his arm felt, he noticed that his morpher wasn't on. He didn't remember taking it off. _Shit_, he thought to himself and suddenly began to panic. If he didn't have his morpher on, then Cam couldn't locate him if he got lost. _Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit_, He thought again as he remembered the stranger in his room and suddenly blacking out. What if the man took his morpher? "Shit!" He screamed out in his head, before realizing he really did it out loud – birds squawking and flying out of the treetops gave that away.

Gripping the sides of head, Dustin cried out in aggravation. Why was this all happening to him? What had he done – except trusting the enemy and almost getting his fellow rangers into big trouble – to deserve this? Why him? What did this strange man want with him? He wasn't anything important. He had no special abilities. He was just a regular kid, or less than that even.

He walked for what seemed like hours, but was probably only fifteen minutes or so, before collapsing against a tree, sliding his back down the trunk until he was sitting in the grass again. He groaned loudly and put his head into the palms of his hands. He was aggravated and ready to just give up. He gripped a handful of hair in each palm tightly, as if pulling his hair would somehow decrease the pounding pain in his head.

The sky was completely dark, the sun having gone down and it being a starless night, by the time he lifted his head up again. What he was going to do with himself, he didn't know. There was no way he was going to be able to get out of the woods tonight, but he definitely didn't want to spend the night there. Despite being the earth wind ninja, Dustin didn't really go for the whole camping scene, at least not without his television and generator. No, he was definitely not the camping type – especially not in the middle of the forest, all alone, in the dark, with absolutely no camping gear.

He could get eaten by a bear or something.

* * *

"Dustin?" Mrs. Brooks called out frantically throughout every room of the house, despite the fact that she and Hunter both knew that the dark haired boy was nowhere in the vicinity. Hunter, on the other hand, had gone outside to contact Cam on the morpher. He'd located Dustin's morpher sitting on his bed before Mrs. Brooks had gotten the chance to find it and had kept it with him.

"What is it, Hunter?" Cam's voice sounded through the morpher.

"Dustin's missing," the crimson ranger responded grimly, knowing he'd been right all along, but also knowing not to rub it in everyone's faces. It wasn't appropriate, not with the yellow ranger's mom running around like crazy inside, worried for her only child. "I stopped by to check up on him and he wasn't here. His morpher was on his bed and he… wasn't," he choked up involuntarily on the last word.

He could hear the panic in Cam's voice, although the other boy tried to suppress it. "Okay, get back to Ninja Ops. I'll see what I can do."

"His mom's here," Hunter responded before Cam could sign off. "She's really worried."

Cam sighed on the other line. "Alright, just tell her that you just caught hold of Dustin and that he's just out for a walk. We'll find him," Cam said, knowing that it would do little to calm Mrs. Brooks down and that there was little chance of finding Dustin without his morpher on him.

Hunter sighed this time as Cam disconnected their conversation and he walked back inside the house, where Dustin's mom had given up searching the house inch by inch and had sunken down at the table. Coming up behind her quietly, Hunter put a soothing hand on the distressed woman's shoulder. She let out a great sob at that moment and grasped his hand with one of her own. It wasn't as if Dustin hadn't often disappeared out of the blue. In fact, it did happen quite frequently. But when his own friends didn't know where he was, that was when she had to worry. And clearly, since Hunter had no idea where he was, there was reason to worry.

"I just got a hold of Tori, who said she and Dustin went out for a walk," Hunter said, his voice tight as he lied. It didn't seem convincing, but Mrs. Brooks let out a laugh nonetheless and wiped her tears with the back of her hand.

"Oh heavens," she muttered out loud. "I'm sitting here worrying for nothing, then, aren't I?" She asked, even though she hardly believed her son's friend. It was just the desire for his words to be true that kept her hanging out to the hope that he really was out for a walk with that pretty blonde girl he always hung around with that made her believe it.

Hunter smiled grimly. "I should get going. Are you going to be alright?" He asked sincerely, really not wanting to leave the woman alone in such a moment of distress, especially if someone had already broken into the house and taken Dustin, but he also really wanted to get out there and find his friend.

'Cause Dustin always was one of his closest friends. Next to Blake, the yellow ranger was probably the closest thing he had to a best friend. As much as he infuriated Hunter, he was without a doubt the person he trusted the most, beside Blake.

Mrs. Brooks scoffed. "Oh, I'll be fine. Just had a brief episode of unnecessary motherly worry. It happens all the time, with a son like Dustin," she said, letting out a light laugh to make light of the situation. "Don't you worry about me."

Hunter squeezed her shoulder once more before leaving the house. As soon as he was out of sight, he ninja streaked his way to Ninja Ops. He stormed in, mostly in anger and distress, and ignored the stares he was receiving from his fellow rangers.

"Hunter," Tori greeted shortly, worry evident in her voice. She cared deeply about Dustin. They'd

known each other since they were kids. To see him hurt would hurt her equally as bad. He nodded briefly without turning towards her then came to a stop before Cam, who was seated in front of the computer, typing frantically on the keyboard, no doubt trying to locate the yellow ranger.

"Any luck?" Hunter asked, even though he knew the answer to the question.

Cam shook his head, then turned to stare at the crimson ranger. "Okay, so tell us exactly what happened since you left Dustin's house this afternoon," he demanded.

Hunter sighed before going into a full-detail account of his departure with Dustin, all the way up to when he found his morpher on the boy's bed.

"Do you think maybe he left on purpose?" Shane asked quietly. He was sitting at the table, his face in his hands, clearly distressed. There was no doubt about it that the red ranger blamed himself for all of this. He was the leader. He was supposed to look after his team. It seemed as if he was completely overlooking Dustin's safety. This was twice this week he'd gone MIA. The first time he'd ended up hurt, and they'd found him in less than a half an hour. This time, who knew how long he's been missing and how hurt he could possibly be.

Hunter narrowed his eyes. "Why would he do that?" He growled out. To assume that Dustin would abandon the team for good seemed traitorous. That wasn't Dustin's game. It was Hunter and Blake's, more so on Hunter's part.

Shane shook his head. "Maybe he's scared," he mumbled out. "I don't know." He stood up, facing Hunter's angry glare. "I don't know how Dustin's mind works. No one does," he said, a bit of dry humor in his voice. "But he's been going through a bit lately. What with Marah and this man. He could have just felt overwhelmed."

Hunter's eyes narrowed even deeper. "That's ridiculous. Dustin doesn't back off that easily."

Shane looked ready to retort, but Sensei cut them off. "Boys, this is no time to be arguing with one another. We don't know what happened with Dustin, but right now our main priority should be finding him, making sure he's safe." The two red rangers clamped their mouths shut and nodded begrudgingly. "Now, Cam," Sensei started again when he was satisfied the two would stop bickering. "Is there anything we can do about Dustin?"

Cam shook his head. "I'm not sure. Hunter," he turned to the crimson ranger. "Let me see Dustin's morpher," he held out his hand expectantly until the other boy complied. "I might be able to locate previous activity from when Dustin was wearing this. It's take a while, so you all should get some rest. It'll probably take me until tomorrow if I can get anything done."

Sensei nodded his small head. "Go home, rangers. Get some sleep. You'll be more use to Dustin if you're not all slugging around."

Shane and Hunter animatedly shook their heads. "I don't think so," Shane sounded. "What if he's in trouble? What if he's hurt? We'll be better for him if we're out there looking for him."

Hunter nodded his head in agreement, as did Tori and Blake in the background.

"We could check places he might be," Tori chimed in. The track, Storm Chargers —"

"I was just at Storm Chargers the same time Hunter was at Dustin's house," Blake interrupted, shaking his head. "And before that, we were both at the track."

"We'll check again," Hunter said eagerly. "And everywhere else. The skate park, the woods, everywhere."

The rest of the rangers didn't hesitate to agree and Sensei and Cam knew they would be fighting a losing battle if they tried to stop them. "Alright," the guinea pig said. "But don't split up, go in pairs. We cannot afford to lose anyone else."

The wind and thunder rangers nodded before heading out of Ninja Ops to look for their lost friend.

**author's note!** so? how was it? what'd you think? i started writing it as soon as i finished chapter three until i fell asleep, computer on my lap, tv on, lights on, fully clothed, the whole deal. anyway. i sat down at work today and just typed away. so i hope you like it 'cause i spent all freaking day on it. haha. thanks to all my reviewers. you guys are the shit.

peace.


	5. and so it agonizes

**disclaimer!** oh look! i'm a seventeen year old broke girl. if i owned power rangers, i'm pretty sure i'd be much older and much more wealthy. and much more well off. sigh. alas, i am none of those.

**author's note!** weee! a update. so i'm not too happy with it, but i hope you guys are. it's not as long as i would have liked, but hey, it was going to be much shorter. yeah. imagine that. soo enjoy and let me know what you think!

* * *

Dustin brought his arms tighter around him. It was getting cold. He was shivering and shaking violently. His eyes started to droop and he buried his face deep into his legs, which were drawn to his chest. He was beginning to feel more and more tired by the minute. It was getting harder and harder to keep himself awake.

* * *

Tori and Shane scanned the dark woods around Ninja Ops without any luck. Dustin was nowhere to be found. They were out there for over an hour before Tori finally lost it and started to cry. Shane was constantly checking in with Cam for any sign of the yellow ranger, almost every five minutes.

"What if we don't find him?" Tori asked between sobs. Shane had his arm around her in comfort. He knew how hard this was for the blonde girl. Dustin and her had been friends for years, practically since they were in diapers.

Shane squeezed her shoulders tightly. "We will. Don't worry," he assured her, even though he was beginning to believe it less and less himself. There was no sign of his friend anywhere.

* * *

Hunter was beginning to get aggravated, Blake could tell. Without any knowledge as to where any one of his friends was the crimson ranger was bound to get frustrated. He needed to know where his friends were at all times. Otherwise, he was going to lose it and Dustin was one of the people that he needed to have by him at all times. While the yellow ranger got under the older boy's skin profusely, Blake knew that it was Dustin that relaxed Hunter more than anyone else ever could. The boy was so at ease with the world. He was so relaxed himself that he could find humor in the darkest of situations.

It was Dustin that they all needed right now.

A groan of frustration escaped Hunter's lips and Blake turned his head to look at his brother with concern.

"We'll find him," the navy ranger told him. "I promise you. Dustin can handle this." But neither of Thunder Ranger was assured.

* * *

"Dad, this is impossible," Cam said as he all but threw down his glasses in frustration. There was no possible way that he was going to figure this out. He may be a genius when it came to computers, but this was something he had never tried before. He wasn't even sure it could be done. As far as he was concerned, it _was_ impossible.

Sensei came up behind his son from where he was meditating. "You can do it, son," the guinea pig reassured him. "I have faith in you." But Cam shook his head and ran his hands through his hair in aggravation.

"It's not possible. It can't be done," he argued. This whole situation was beyond everyone's knowledge. No one knew what to do. Nothing like this had ever happened to any of the rangers before. Sure Blake and Hunter up and left many times before and the whole academy had been captured but all of that had an explanation – Lothor. This, with Dustin, was too confusing. This wasn't a Lothor-like move. It seemed too well thought-out. "What if Shane was right? What if Dustin did just leave?" Cam asked, turning to face his father.

The latter shook his head. "It's possible that he did, but that doesn't sound like Dustin, now does it?" Cam sighed, knowing his father was right. He would rather Dustin have left on his own accord than to him have disappeared because someone took him.

"What about Lothor?" Cam asked. "If it was him, we would have heard from him wouldn't we have? If he had Dustin." Just then the computer buzzed and Shane's face appeared on the screen.

"Anything?" He asked tiredly. All the rangers were bound to be getting exhausted. They'd been out there for over an hour with no luck. Shane's constant questioning wasn't helping very much. But Cam understood the red ranger's concern and worry.

The samurai ranger shook his head for what felt like the millionth time. "No," he replied solemnly. Shane nodded his head in understanding and tiredness and signed off. Cam shook his head again and buried his face in his palms. He was getting so tired of this. Why couldn't they just find Dustin?

* * *

Holding himself together, Dustin couldn't keep his eyes open any longer. He was so tired, so cold, so alone. It was getting harder to breathe. He needed help. He needed to get out of this forest. Even though it was summer, the night was cold, especially wherever he was – which he still had no idea where that was. His eyes drifted close and before he knew anything else, all he could see was darkness.

* * *

"What's that?" Tori asked, pointing to a lump on the ground as Shane signed off with Cam. They were in the middle of the forest. It was dark, so she couldn't see exactly what it was and she was tired so her eyes made everything blurrier than it originally would be.

Shane turned and looked at where her finger was pointing towards. There was a considerably large lump there, but his eyes were just as messed up as hers at the moment. They hurried over to it eagerly, hoping to the high heavens that it was Dustin.

It was a log. But on it was a yellow shirt – Dustin's.

* * *

"Hunter?" Blake called out softly to his older brother, stopping in his tracks. "What's that over there?" He nodded in the direction of something by a tree nearby. Hunter's head snapped up and he all but ran over to the tree. Blake followed right behind him.

"Dustin!" Hunter nearly shouted out as he shook the figure gently. The boy was shaking, even though it wasn't all that cold outside. It was chilly, but it must've seemed much colder to the yellow ranger after being out here for God knows how long. His forehead was burning hot when Hunter felt it. "Come on, Dustin. Wake up, man," he begged as he shook the brunette again, rougher this time. "Wake up," he repeated.

Blake stood behind him, not knowing what to do for a moment before the shock at finding Dustin, especially in a state like this, left him and he used his morpher to call Cam.

"Wake up," Hunter's voice sounded weak.

* * *

"Got it!" Cam exclaimed suddenly as he hit the big red button in the center of the keyboard and an image flickered on the screen before coming into clear view. It was Dustin, standing in his room by the door, but he wasn't alone. There was a strange man sitting on his bed and Cam and Sensei watched as the horror flickered onto Dustin's face as he watched the man stand and walk towards him. He flinched away from the man as the latter grabbed his wrist and moved it off the doorknob and shut the door, then moved to Dustin's face. There was no sound but Cam and his father could see the scream in Dustin's eyes.

Then Dustin would have slumped to the floor in a heap had the strange man not caught him before he could. Holding the boy up, the man removed the morpher from Dustin's wrist. Then, briefly after, the two disappeared and the screen went black.

"Damn it," Cam muttered under his breath, not even bothering to watch his language around his father, who didn't seem to mind, at least not this time. He understood the fear in the curse. "That must have been…" he trailed off, but his dad understood anyway.

"Yes," the rodent muttered under his breath than moved away to meditate some more with this new knowledge in mind.

The screen buzzed again as Shane's face appeared. Cam was about to replay this information back to the red and blue rangers but Shane cut him off before he could even open his mouth. "We found Dustin's shirt," he said, holding up the plaid yellow button up shirt Dustin always wore. "He's got to be somewhere nearby. Did you get anything?"

Cam was both relieved and nervous at the same time. Relieved that they had evidence Dustin had been in that area at some point in time. Nervous that there might not be anything left to find other than that shirt, which had a tear in it as if it had gotten stuck to something and that's why the yellow ranger was missing it. Clearing his throat, he shook those thoughts out of his head. "I got it to work. Some one took him, left his morpher on the bed."

Shane's face screwed up in confusion. "Why would they do that?"

Cam shook his head. "I don't know, but at least it proves it wasn't Lothor," he said, though he wasn't sure if that was a good or bad thing. Lothor's goons weren't too difficult to face. They at least knew what to expect when it came to those guys. They had no idea who this new guy was but they were sure now it wasn't just some random mugging Dustin had faced. If this guy could use his hand, or his mind or whatever he did, to make Dustin go unconscious just by touch and then transport the two of them out of Dustin's room, he had to have some abnormal power.

Shane sighed but at that moment the screen buzzed again and Blake appeared on screen.

"We've got him. We're heading back now," he said and signed off without another word. Cam, Shane, Tori, and Sensei (who had come behind Cam unnoticed sometime during the conversation) all sighed in relief and the red and blue rangers ninja streaked back to Ninja Ops, managing to get there before Hunter and Blake did with Dustin.

* * *

"What's wrong with him?" Tori asked worriedly as Hunter and Blake set the unconscious yellow ranger down on the table, for what was a time too many if you asked the other rangers.

Cam looked him over thoroughly, though it was hard because the boy was shaking so violently. He sighed. "I don't know," he answered after a while. "There aren't any more visible cuts or bruises, none that are too recent anyway," he added as he referred back to the beating the boy had taken not too long ago. Not that anyone wanted reminding of that incident. "He's burning up, but is shivering from the cold," he said out loud, although everyone was aware of that fact already. "He might be going into shock."

Tori moaned in fear and collapsed to the ground. Blake sat down next to her, put his arm around her shoulders, and pulled her into a hug. Shane and Hunter rounded on Cam. "What do you mean?" they asked together, violence and anger in their voices, as if this was all Cam's fault. The green ranger held up his hands in defense.

"I said he might be. I don't know, he could just be sick. It's difficult to tell. I don't have all that much medical experience, you know. I'm the computer guy, not the doctor." Shane and Hunter backed off, their shoulders slumping in guilt. They knew it wasn't his fault; they were just so frustrated that they had to have someone to take their anger out on.

"Maybe we should take him to a hospital," Blake suggested from the floor, where Tori was sobbing quietly into his shoulder.

Cam nodded but Hunter shook his head. "No, how would we explain this?"

"He got lost in the woods and we couldn't find him?" Shane put in. "Hunter, he needs a doctor. Bruises are one thing, but if he's going into shock or something, we can't help that."

Hunter sighed and ran a hand through his hair. Shane was right. He nodded. "Right, let's go."

* * *

The ride to the hospital was a quiet one. Cam drove Tori's van after they had all made their way out of Ninja Ops and to where she had parked it right outside. Tori herself was in no shape to drive; she was still crying, her head now leaning on Blake's shoulder as he had his arm wrapped around her waist in the car. Shane sat in the passenger seat and absentmindedly played with the radio while Hunter sat with Dustin in the very back.

No one spoke.

When they finally arrived, Hunter was the one that carried Dustin in, the rest of the group rushing behind and in front of him. It was late so the hospital was pretty much empty, save a few people. They headed through the emergency room entrance and Cam and Shane went to talk to the nurse behind the counter. She called for someone to get a stretcher and before the rangers knew it, Dustin was being wheeled away by a doctor and a few nurses.

It all went by in a blur.

The five of them sat in the waiting room after telling the doctors their story. Tori was the first one to bring up Dustin's mom. They weren't sure if they should call her or not. The woman was probably worried sick. It was two in the morning and Dustin had not yet gone home, obviously, or called her. After the disappearance scare, the woman was sure to be in pieces. But then they would have to tell her the story they told the doctors and whether or not she would believe that Dustin had gone out into the woods alone wasn't a chance they were willing to take. While Mrs. Brooks was often kind of scatterbrained, she knew her son well enough to know that he wasn't the wandering out into the forest by himself type.

In the end Tori called to say that Dustin was staying the night at her house. Mrs. Brooks had been waiting up, worried sick of course, and Tori apologized profusely saying that Dustin forgot to call but had passed out a few minutes ago. All was well.

What wasn't doing so well was Dustin's condition. It was an hour and a half later that the doctor came back out. "We're not exactly sure what is going on with him," the man said. "The good news is that he's not going into shock, but he is extremely ill and all we can do now is hope for the best." He also said that they had put Dustin on antibiotics and that the boy was currently stable and resting. Visiting hours were over, however, and the doctor sent the five kids home to bed.

Naturally, they didn't go home and they sure as hell weren't in any mood to sleep. Instead, they headed back to Ninja Ops to let Sensei in on the news (or lack thereof). Sensei also tried to send the kids back home to bed, to no avail. As far as they were concerned, they wouldn't be sleeping until the knew that Dustin was going to be okay.

Anxiety filled them the rest of the night. Cam and Blake and Tori all drifted in and out of states of sleep, but never fully fell asleep for more than a few minutes. Shane and Hunter paced the entire time. Both were too awake to even bother sleeping. Sensei meditated throughout the night. All in all, it was a rough night for them all.

And things were only going to get worse from there.

* * *

**author's note! **sooo? what'd you think? sucky, wasn't it? sorry about that. i wish i could have made it much more dramatic but that was the best i could do. but i hope you guys liked it anyway. (: review please and thanks.

peace.


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